Ask and you shall receive~

dievca read an email from the handbag brand ,Jack Gomme, and spotted a bag she was interested in:

Jack Gommer _Mandarine_A_800x

The Mandarine color was sold out online – 3 hours after the email arrived.

So dievca dropped an email to the French Brand’s customer service to ask if there was a orange bag available in a physical store or something.  she opened and closed the email in French – but that was the limit of her skills….

Fresh tangerine on white groundIt worked!  Customer service replied within 24 hours and put an extra bag online for dievca to buy.  The bag has arrived and its a breath of Citrus for the Spring.

If you like the shape and size it looks like Cyprus and Noir are the only two colors still available from the six. Click on the title below to see the bags online:

ROCK NAPPA LEATHER CROSSBODY BAG

SKU: 23E1768.AC01D-2750

295,00 €

BAG DESIGNED IN PARIS AND MADE IN FRANCE

ATELIER CUIR – NAPPA: A refined style and subtle shades underline the beauty and quality of this Nappa leather with soft and resistant finishes, carefully selected in Europe

– Crossbody bag
– Adjustable shoulder strap
– Zipper closure
– 1 outside pocket
– 2 inside pockets
– Comes with a cotton storage pouch
– Capacity: pocket book, large wallet, 8″ tablet, small water bottle
– Composition: 100% cowhide leather

Dimensions: 26x12x7cm
Weight: 365g


Old Favorites

When the schedule is packed and you are rushing around –
it helps to know that you have the “old favorites” in a Go-bag.
All readily available to make an elegant Presentation for Master:

  • Vivienne Westwood “Orgie” Dress in Orange
  • Salvatore Ferragamo Black Leather Heels
  • Wolford black Thigh-Hi Stay-up stockings
  • Hartman Rose Collar and Lead in Gold Lether
  • Chanel Red Allure Lipstick

Lime – Aid

On the flight to Los Angeles, dievca picked up a Financial Times and there was a great Sunday Style insert.  she’s been disappointed with Fashion Reporting in the recent past, except for Harper’s Bazaar.  It was a treat that the FT did not disappoint either.

A small blurb showed some Lime-Colored offerings for the new season:

This Lime agenda was pushed forward after admiring Dionne Warwick singing Burt Bacharach:

Since dievca should be saving her pennies –  she shopped her apartment:

Not glamorous, but some Lime-Aid.


5:20 am and beyond

Arrive at work – wearing this:

Midday – strip to this:

Head home to cook this:

Lasagna-Soup-550x799

one pot lasagna soup recipe

  • 1 lb extra-lean ground beef
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 tsp Italian seasoning
  • 1/2 tsp each salt & pepper
  • 1 (650mL) jar marinara sauce
  • 4 cups beef broth
  • 10 uncooked lasagna noodles broken into approx. 1-2 inch pieces
  • 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
  • 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese
  • Fresh parsley or basil, for garnish

Stovetop instructions

  • Sauté ground beef in a large pot over med-high heat until browned, about 5 minutes. Add onions and garlic, sautéing another 2-3 minutes until fragrant.
  • Add remaining ingredients except for cheeses and fresh herbs, stirring to combine then bringing to a boil. Place lid on pot and simmer for 20 minutes until pasta is cooked through.
  • Serve soup in large bowls, sprinkling mozzarella cheese overtop and topping with a dollop of ricotta. Garnish with fresh herbs if desired, then serve and enjoy!

Slow cooker instructions

  • Brown the beef, onions and garlic in a large skillet over med-high heat for 5 minutes. Add to slow cooker, along with remaining ingredients except cheese. Cook on high for 4 hours or on low for 8 hours. Top with cheeses, then serve and enjoy!

Instant Pot instructions

  • Brown the beef, onions and garlic using the sauté feature for 5 minutes. Add remaining ingredients, except for cheeses, pushing the pasta underneath the liquid. Cook on high pressure for 3 minutes, then do a quick release. Top bowls with cheeses, then serve and enjoy!

Simple in the City

After a few years of taking care of aging parents, COVID and body changes – dievca lost interest in Fashion or even a closet revamp.  she’s been coming out of her shell and leaning towards a more practical closet.  Things seem to be coming together because she feels like she can reach in to the closet and find something to wear.  That’s the point, right?

(click on the item to see a larger image and the brand)


The Brown Wren reappears!

In 2014, dievca posted about a practical outfit for a practical dievca coded in the color brown. 6 years later (almost 7), she has upgraded the “Brown Wren” look for cold weather with Banana Republic’s help (and a 40% off one day sale…)


Something for the Christmas Stocking

Planet Bike Strap Light
Something for Holiday Giving

dievca’s had these velcro/elastic band lights for a couple of years. They are rechargeable, easy to add and remove when needed. she puts them on her arm, her backpack, her bike, her ankle – whatever needs to be seen. Runners, Cyclists, Strollers, Kids, Adults can use them.

Something inexpensive,
$12.95 for two on Amazon

Something of Use


The more you know: dublé

dublé

A spoon rest (also known as a dublé) is a piece of kitchenware that serves as a place to lay spoons and other cooking utensils, to prevent cooking fluids from getting onto countertops, as well as keeping the spoon from touching any contaminants that might be on the counter.

Perhaps a simple gift for Thanksgiving or the Holidays? (click on the photos for brand and prices)


If you are in the Market

for a new coat.

Free People Lara Coat BeigeFree People Lara Coat ArmyFree People Lara Coat NavyFree People Lara Coat Back
The Lana Coat from Free People is gorgeous! Now, it is a lighter weight, so it won’t take you through a cold winter without layering. But, currently the World seems to be running very warm and an over-sized forgiving silhouette offers room for a sweater.

Available in Sand, Army and Midnight

$198


Ticking the boxes for Autumn 2022 by shopping your closet

Here are dievca’s offerings:

√√ Wide Leg Faux Leather Pants
√ Fair Isle Sweater
√ Chunky Shoes
√ Camera Bag
√ Wood Eyeglass Frames
√ Cashmere / Wool Baseball Cap
√ Over-sized Coat
√ Over-sized Chain Necklace
√ Pearls

What’s in your closet that works for 2022?
dievca bets that there are some fabulous pieces!


Venturing out – Shopping in SoHo

You can tell two items:

  1. Master is traveling and out of the picture, so dievca doesn’t feel submissive – she’s not running “ladylike”.
  2. dievca’s knee is feeling better because she is more willing to walk the City.

This Sunday?  Shopping in SoHo with a friend – dievca is supposed to be the responsible human who helps her friend put on the brakes for spending.   Really? dievca’s not sure that she is the best person for this job description…

Weather today: a high of 63 F (17 C) and sunny.

Sounds like Sweater weather with option to strip off layers – dievca is going “old school” with a late 80’s early 90’s College vibe: (And, yes, the knee brace is an accessory – it fits under her jeans and helps dievca walk longer).


Something of Use – Inexpensive / Right-Size Crossbody

Quince croco_1

Quince Croco Leather Crossbody Bag

dievca looked at the Clare V. Midi Sac as a crossbody bag ($375) – black is no longer an option on the website and eBay wasn’t offering anything. dievca did get a Clare V. Woven Shoulder strap on eBay for a good price, but no useful bag was forthcoming…

Clare V. Crossbody-Strap Multi

Since she couldn’t find the Clare V. bag, dievca opened up her search and was led to a bag with high reviews on the Quince website ($99.90):  

Quince W-BAG-4-CRC_0226

A beautiful Italian leather crossbody bag. Handcrafted in Florence, Italy from 100% Italian top grain leather.  Luxury quality for an approachable price.  The size and shape of the bag make it extremely useful – an easy carry on the days dievca doesn’t need a backpack.  dievca thinks its better than the Clare V. shape for her curvy body.  She’s able to use the Clare V. woven shoulder strap and the price of $99.90 is much better than $375.

Something of Use!


Last minute invite – a Gala

At, 3:42 pm yesterday, dievca received an invitation to a show, cocktail party and dinner as a fundraiser tonight.  she has 1 hour to get dressed at work, then to the theatre.  The good news is dievca’s hair is a blunt cut bob which won’t take much fiddling, she can get her face washed and made up in five minutes.  It’s what to wear that is the challenge.

The 2nd piece of good news is that the fundraiser does not require “heavy duty” glamour…but the weather has been unpredictable…

(all items in this post are labelled – click on the photo for a good look and the Brand)

Here are dievca’s 1st thought “easy” options:

Adding Shoes:

At this point in her Life, dievca will need two not very glamourous items:

No time for a Mani/Pedi, but no one goes wrong with a good Lipstick:

Who knows which way the jewelry will go:

Clutch options are easy:

But the coat or wrap depends upon the weather:

Wish dievca luck!


What to wear scrambling around the City

This outfit is not glamourous – but it went from work, to a coop showing, walking with the knee brace underneath, to a dance performance. Practical and clean-lined would be the descriptors:

Click on the photos for the description of the items.


Mamma Mia! via Trompe-l’œil

Miramar-Mia-Jean-418 (1)

Miramar-Mia-Jean-418Miramar-Mia-Jean-021
Trompe-l’œil is an artistic term for the highly realistic optical illusion of three-dimensional space and objects on a two-dimensional surface.

These Rag & Bone “jeans” are part of the Miramar Collection of sweatpants (cotton terry/elastic waist) which are printed to look like jeans.

dievca has fooled many a friend with her two versions of the pants: gathered ankle and straight leg. she would like to upgrade to the Mia cut.

What do you think?

Is dievca cheating by wearing terry cloth “jeans” or just being smart and comfortable?


Assessing the Practicalities

Master has a check-up scheduled,
do you think this is how the conversation will go?


Laying low today~

black catdievca is a walking mess this morning. she went to the Chicago Cubs/New York Mets game last night and got home late. That lack of sleep has made this day slightly dangerous (almost got hit on the bike, hit a pothole, almost slammed by the elevator doors, tripped on some stairs, etc.) – so she is lying low. Taking it easy. Nothing is a rush. She will try again tomorrow.


Looking for Lingerie

bed lingerie

Your Master/Mistress has arrived home from a long trip —
you’re digging frantically for something fabulous!

Then you realize that you have to work, run to Physical Therapy
and immediately afterward ride your bike uptown.

What can you get away with in that scenario?

Something practical that makes your Sir or Madam smile
(and pack your lingerie incase you get lucky with a shower):

Outdoor Voices Exercise Dress

Outdoor Voices Exercise Dress $100


Keeping your Cadence – something of use

20220803_092825

Photo: dievca Cadence Travel Containers 08/2022

dievca travels – not heavily, but about 10+ trips (short and long) a year. she spotted these travel containers from Cadence to organize her “fluids” + “odds and ends”. They work wonderfully well for short trips and storing items for the “quick” grab of last minute travel. They do run out for longer trips, unless you double up on the units of storage.

Cadence Travel Capsules

The Capsules are customizable, leakproof, magnetic containers designed to maintain your routines – home and away.

You can buy the containers singly or in packs – choosing your color(s) and labels.

As you can see, dievca went for a multi-colored approach as well as different labels. This has to do with her not being able to see well without glasses or contacts. If you can see — a single colored set of containers with different labels would be very elegant!

Mix and Match – take what you need.
Something of Use.

20220728_144132

Photo: dievca Cadence Travel Containers 08/2022


Crafty submissive

dievca does repair Master’s clothing via needle and thread or clean items via soaking, etc.  This is just normal Life stuff for a domestic dievca from the Midwest.   In a past life, she did sew items with the sewing machine, quilts, dresses, hemming, etc.  The creativity dropped off with moving to NYC.  Not enough room and the sewing machine lived at her parents house -and is now in the Midwestern storage unit.

Anyways, dievca bought this dress:

raquelallegra-GraceDressinApple_1_x575
The Raquella Allegra Grace Dress in Apple.
100% Rayon
Originally $370 on sale for $99.90

The Grace Dress is inspired by the one-and-only Grace Jones. You’ll love the relaxed fit with dramatic blouson sleeves in lightweight stain. Wear yours with leather sandals and a petite bag.

Fits true to size, take your normal size
Model is 5’8″ and is wearing a size 2
Mini length
Relaxed fit
Blouson sleeves
100% Rayon

It looks like a super bright color which is lovely for Summer. Yes, it might be too much for dievca… but she has a plan to dye the dress if she hates the color. Rayon fabric takes dye very well, though the fabric becomes delicate when wet. dievca is inspired by this current Raquel Allegra Dip-dyed Grace Dress in Indigo ($475):

RAllegra_Spring GraceDressIndigoDipDyeMatteSatin

And if it ends up a “dievca disaster” its only $99 – not an emergency.
dievca will let you know what happens!


Something of Use – Herb Scissors

Multi blade Herb Scissors

A scissor-shaped herb cutter is the perfect tool for snipping and mincing herbs, scallions and other delicate foods. Five-blade design cuts quickly and evenly.

dievca picked up a pair during Amazon Prime Days – hers are a little more sturdy than the pair shown above. 4.5 stars out of 2,010 ratings.

This has made produce prepping much easier for dievca – Something of Use!


Repurposing a Caprese Salad – really. (Summertime Goodness)

Heirloom Tomatodievca had her first experience with ordering fruit and vegetables from Whole Foods.

Her knee is still gimpy and the stores around her are too close for a cab ride and too far for a walk on her knee. So, she ordered online and had it delivered.

Buying fruit and vegetables is more personal than pasta or milk, dievca made her choices and hoped for the best.  The shopper did pretty well.  The peaches were a bit riper than dievca buys and the two heirloom tomatoes were HUGE.  A single tomato barely fit into dievca’s hand.

The tomatoes needed to be used immediately, so dievca chopped BOTH of them into cubes combined them with a package fresh mozzarella pearls, then added fresh basil chopped with herb scissors, olive oil, red balsamic vinegar, and salt/pepper.

Fresh Mozarella Pearls

Multi blade Herb ScissorsMaster and dievca could only eat half the tossed salad, so dievca put the leftovers into the fridge for later.

When she pulled it out there was a lot of liquid and as a salad it didn’t appeal.

What to do?

Cod was on the menu within two days and dievca had seen recipes of Cod baked with tomatoes, so she decided to be creative.  dievca removed the mozzarella pearls from the leftover caprese salad and marinated the wild caught cod with the salad liquid, tomatoes and basil. She then baked the cod, including the tomatoes and liquid, at 400 F (205 C) for 15 min. (she started with 10 min, but the liquid didn’t look like it was evaporating enough so she went to 5 min more) When the cod came out of the oven she put the mozzarella pearls on top to melt and added a dash of lemon juice.

She served the cod, tomatoes and cheese over plain white rice with a side of sautéed fresh sugar snap peas.
(recipe below)

The meal was a success!

dievca thinks it worked because cod has a tendency to take on flavors very well.
she was very happy to use the rest of the heirloom tomatoes!

Sautéed Sugar Snap Peas inspired by the Pioneer Woman blog recipe:

Sugar snap peasIngredients
1 lb. sugar snap peas
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 clove of garlic minced
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
1 tbsp. butter
1 tbsp. lemon juice
Directions
  1. Snap the stem end of the peas; pull the string off of the length of the pod, and discard. (you may need to do both sides of the pea – dievca did)
  2. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and oil swirl to coat the pan. Add the snap peas, salt, and black pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender yet crisp, 3 to 5 minutes.
  3. Remove from the heat. Add the butter and lemon juice and stir well to coat.

The “Hero” travel outfit

dievca has found a simple travel outfit that works in heat and cooler environments. 

From the Beach to a Sidewalk Cafe, to the Mountains, to a Roadside Bar.

No worries about wrinkles, drips and damage.

You can click on the photos for the item descriptions, but dievca’s exact run down is this:

  • Anthropologie Gardner Cotton Gauze Utility Pants
  • Garnet Hill Tank Mushroom
  • Surface To Air Crochet Knit Sweater Taupe
  • Zimmerman studded Sandals Tan
  • 4 Melissa Joy Manning Sterling Silver and Recycled Gold Cuffs (various)
  • Ippolita Cherish 18K Ring
  • Jack Vartanian 14K Gold Chain Ring
  • Pomellato Dodo 18K charm necklace – Monkey and Swallow
  • Etsy 14K Gold Post earrings
  • Scunci Hair clip

Something of Use: Stasher Stand Up


Stasher is a revolutionary food storage alternative to plastic bags and containers. Made of 100% pure platinum food-grade silicone, Stasher offers all the ease and convenience of plastic bags, but without the negative consequences. Features the innovative air-tight, pinch-press seal to keep food fresh and no leaks, ideal storage for food, Travel, school and more. Stasher Contains no petroleum, no PVC and no latex, so it’s good for people and the planet. Dishwasher, microwave and freezer-safe, Stasher is ideal for busy on-the-go lifestyles. What will you stash in your Stasher.

dievca found that her Stasher Stand Up was perfect for traveling. Clear for the Airport lines, studier than a ziplock, easy to seal and easy to wash. It comes in multiple colors incase you travel with Family and costs $21.99.

Beyond travel you can store, freeze, microwave, boil food in the bag then wash it in the dishwasher.

Something of (multiple) use!


A moment with New Jersey

dievca runs to New Jersey every couple of months to hit Wal-Mart for staples (toilet paper, paper towels, etc.) Her early morning trip is taking place after a long weekend of work – she survived.

To celebrate her time heading to NJ (and dealing with crazy drivers) plus surviving work, dievca invites you to join her with Jersey Girl, Gloria Gayner (Newark, NJ) in singing a fabulous disco-era anthem.

Good Morning! XO


less than 24 hours in the Life of a dievca

Baby Shower (above – click on photos for Brands)
To a Swim
To Master
To an MRI for the knee
To a Gala (below – click on photos for Brands, note the emergency flip flops for the knee)
To Work

dievca hit the gamut of actives


Bright Lights, Big City – Herschel Supply Co.

dievca’s current backpack – its holding up well!

Something of Use.


Packing for the Beach

~First thoughts~

(Click on the photos for a closer look)


Looking like a Human – 2 options

In a past life of Athletics – dievca has been known to train in large t-shirts and shorts, cotton sweatpants, mismatched socks, etc.  The training was more important than the look.  That statement still holds true – but when you are no longer an adorable, in shape 20 something — you may look sad and sloppy in your 50s.  This is ok for home workouts – but dievca is finding that when she cleans up a bit, her workouts become more positive, and perhaps she isn’t scaring herself or anyone.

dievca has mentioned Splits59 previously, she’s added some pieces to make the outfits layered and temperature functional:

Splits59 Cait _INDIGO_CRIMSON_OMBRE techflexsplits59-womens-high-waist-raquel-tights-mainSplits59 Indigo Turtleneck Indigo WhiteSplits59 Indigo Sadie Tank

  • Splits59 Techflex Bra Ombre
  • Splits59 High Waist Raquel Tights Indigo
  • Splits59 Sadie Tank Indigo
  • Splits59 Ribbed Turtleneck Indigo White

dievca’s second favorite workout outfit is a combination of a jogbra and shorts from Girlfriend Collective and a tank and light sweatshirt from Splits59:

Girlfriend Collective Tommy Bra Dark GreenGirlfriend Collective High Rise Biker Shorts Dark GreenSplits59 Dark Forest Toni TankSplits 59 Warm up Fleece Forest

  • Girlfriend Collective Tommy Bra Dark Green
  • Girlfriend Collective High-Rise Biker Shorts Dark Green
  • Splits59 Toni Tank Dark Forest
  • Splits59 Warm Up Fleece Dark Forest

Do you have a suggestion for a great workout clothing brand?


Coffee Fashion

Fashion Coffee Holder

Time to carry that coffee with elegance and ease!
A leather and faux tortoise shell chain coffee carrier
will complete your look!
From Etsy shop “i am fem